Munich. The fifth BMW Motorrad International
GS Trophy, a 2016 Southeast Asia book came to a close, after
7 tough days’ riding, with a fantastic culmination on Saturday, March
5. With a foe still in a change right adult to a final
special test, it was a moving finish – motionless in foster of Team South
Africa who kept their haughtiness to secure a nation’s initial feat in
a eventuality after twice fixation runner-up. Let´s have a demeanour behind on a
week packaged with high temperatures, offroad riding, accessible people
and adventures in a jungle.

The fifth book brought together 19 teams (comprising 57 riders
and 19 embedded journalists) representing 25 nations for a seven-day
over-1300 kilometre trek by a forests, jungles and plateau of
Northern Thailand. The roving was presumably a many technical yet, as
a riders guided their BMW R 1200 GS bikes along single-track
trails some-more same to enduro racing than journey competition.
Temperatures matched those of a South African book in 2010 –
using into a high 30ºC operation – and with high steam it was one
of a hotter, sweatier GS Trophies!

The start came during a Rim Doi Resort, in Chiang Dao during 8.00am on the
morning of Feb 28, and while unseasonal complicated sleet had cleared out
a designed march for day one, a riders were still treated to some
glorious off-road trails before attack a initial – and possibly
physically a toughest – special test, ‘Broken Bridge’. Such themes
are by now familiar, prolonged days in a saddle with always some
severe riding, total with special tests that plea the
riders’ teamwork, their problem elucidate skills, mostly their strength,
as good as their bike riding. As ever, a riders would strech the
nightly bivouacs well-exercised.

The 2016 book again saw a eventuality grow, with 114 motorcycles on
a debate and an environment of tighten to 200 people (riders, marshals,
medics, caterers, organisers and more). As ever, a motorcycles – BMW
R 1200 GS and GSA – were adult to a task; occasional puncture repairs
on a route tested a unsentimental skills of a riders while crash
repairs gave a BMW Motorrad mechanics a few hours work any evening;
yet a engines and framework never gave up. The latest GS bikes were
praised for their palliate of use, good supplement aids and ideal ruggedness.
As before, a competitors were won-over by a bike’s impression as
many as a ideal capability of these iconic machines.

Team South Africa wins.

Team South Africa has been one of a strongest teams in every
book of a GS Trophy given their opening in 2010. They missed out on
a win then, by usually one point, and came tighten again in 2014, so the
win this year was generally savoured. Thorough credentials meant the
group were always in row – they were in fact a group to kick –
yet John Harris, Charl Moolman and Byron Coetsee were winners on every
level, winning as many friends as points.

Team UK and Team Germany were their nearest competitors and the
harsh efforts of a dual teams kept a outcome of a eventuality in
doubt right adult to a unequivocally final test. And while a strength of
Team South Africa could not be denied, it was wise that the
runner-up position should be common by these dual good teams (Team UK
carrying won in 2010, Team Germany in 2012).

Three new teams took partial in 2016. Team China finished an impact right
from a start, carrying given adult their general atmosphere flights and
instead selecting to float to a eventuality on their possess GSs! Four days in
a saddle saw them float adult to a Shang-ri La Hotel in Chiang Mai for
a central opening – along with some 60 supporters, many also
BMW-mounted. They finished utterly substantially a many considerable opening to
a eventuality yet. And Team China valid a rival team, too, strong
and well-practiced they took an considerable 7th place on their debut.

Team Southeast Asia competence have been reduction successful, yet nonetheless
brought many colour to a event, good humour, and found they enjoyed
their ‘home’ march as many as a visitors.

The third new group were a International Female Team. Easily the
many renouned group in a event, Stéphanie Bouisson (France), Morag
Campbell (South Africa) and Amy Harburg (Australia) showed
bike-handling skills equal to a group (in fact infrequently superior).
They would have finished aloft if they hadn’t been so punished by the
strength-based tests, yet as Amy reported, they were never degraded –
not even in lifting a 238kg GS over a 1.5-metre tree case – it just
took a tiny some-more time for them than for a men. The group was much
welcomed by a men, and cheered-on all a way, yet again as the
girls explained, this was a same for all teams – any group supports
everyone. It’s truly a rope of brothers – and sisters.

At a finish, Team South Africa’s Byron Coetsee spoke for his
teammates about their win:

“Relief is a initial emotion, afterwards happiness. With South Africa’s
record in a eventuality – we’ve come second twice, even losing by usually one
indicate – afterwards to finish like this is like a weight of a universe has
been carried from a shoulders. We share this impulse with Roger,
Gerber, Warren and all a prior group members from South Africa!”

The BMW R 1200 GS – foe proven.

The BMW R 1200 GS valid some-more than adult to a plea of 7 days
on a trails in Northern Thailand. The 2016 R 1200 GSs featured the
latest engine revisions, including a new heavier holder that creates for
smoother using and Shift Assist Pro that allows clutchless up- and
down-shifts. As good a riders had a formula block that enables the
Enduro Pro mode to cgange a rider-assist systems to fit sportive
off-road riding. And with usually a lightest turn of pile-up protection,
including a aluminium enduro engine ensure and steel pile-up bars –
and a imperishable Metzeler Karoo 2 tyres – a GSs were totally trail-ready.

The feedback from a riders was regularly positive, many expressing
pleasure in a palliate of doing a bikes, their tough insurgency to
impassioned riding, and enchanting character.

Here’s what a few of a riders suspicion of a bikes:

Morag Campbell: “I desired a bike, a torque, a present reaction,
a maneuverability, generally a attitude! And so fast! we rode mine
in Enduro Pro yet traction control and ABS – and still it was so
easy to ride. we adore it, for all of us, any time and bland it’s
a best bike!”

Francesco Catanese: “The BMW is a surprise, given in my imagination
it was a large bad bike, yet on enduro tracks, in a silt and a dust,
a bike was totally perfect, no peculiar sounds, no automatic problem,
for me it was a surprise. Much power, ideal bike!”

Anton Vlasov: “I have ridden this bike several times, yet we should
contend that this bike is great, we found out so many things about the
handling, a engine, everything. This eventuality shows us all about
this bike, it’ll float highway, afterwards singletrack route in the
mountains, afterwards we can float loose with your friends. The event
showed this perfectly!”

Amy: “I desired it, it was unequivocally tough and some of a tests for
us were unequivocally physical, yet we got by them, usually maybe not quite
as discerning as a men. But it was so many fun, so we desired a whole event.”

Morag: “It’s beautiful, a internal people we met are extremely
friendly, and curious, and open to us, and wanting to rivet and
that’s unequivocally nice. From a earthy outlook a view is
stunning, it changes all a time, forest, mountains, rivers. I’ve
enjoyed any bit of it. And a food has been great, too!”

Stéphanie: “The nation is amazing. I’ve been travelling in Chile, in
Morocco, in Europe. Here it’s unequivocally different, a scenery, a people,
it feels unequivocally protected and gentle. The people are everything. Amazing.
What can we say? Peace and love!”

Alfred Scheurer / Team Alps

“The nation was unequivocally nice, we appreciated roving a tiny trails
and being among a flora – banana trees, bamboo, palms – it was very
nice. We had a good time, we finished some mistakes when we were very
shaken during a commencement and we didn’t work together as good as we’d
have liked!

“All a same, in all it was a unequivocally good experience. Normally we ride
alone, yet to work as a group in this, that’s unequivocally nice, it was a very
special experience.”

Gastón Quiroga / Team Argentina

“It’s been a good week, we’ve enjoyed a pleasing scenery, the
people and saying so many things – elephants one day, H2O buffalo
a next. And all these things wrapped around a many incredible
riding, and a friendships that we make in a GS Trophy. It is an
extraordinary experience. Everyday has been so large in experiences, it will
take some time to remember them all. It is unequivocally special.”

Fernando Deneka / Team Brazil

“Everything is beautiful. It’s a dream to get to float a bike like
this for 7 days. Team Brazil hasn’t finished so good in a event, but
a participation is unequivocally beautiful. Thailand is beautiful, a people here
are beautiful, and a motorcycle a R 1200 GS, is spectacular.

The knowledge in my life, it is incredible.”

Cory Villeneuve, Danick Cyr Scott McDonald / Team Canada

Cory: “It was flattering amazing, we had a good time it was a lot of fun.
we consider it surpassed all expectations.”

Danick: “It was a tough competition, yet really-really great, nice
country, good people. And good competitors from 25 countries.”

Scott: “We desired a singular track, we don’t float singular lane so much
and a thoroughness turn that we have to request is approach more: 100%
all a time. You make one mistake and you’re going to get hurt. And
it’s not for usually 5 minutes, it’s for a prolonged time – hours! You’ll
be meditative we can’t do this any longer, my mind can’t concentrate
this tough for this long, I’m going to make a mistake. And afterwards once
we get out of it, you’re like, ‘Wow, we did it!’”

Cory: Everything is perfect, all is pleasing here, BMW
Motorrad have finished a good pursuit this week and I’ve unequivocally enjoyed the
GS Trophy, I’m unequivocally thankful, it’s been amazing.”

Jan Zlabek / Team CEEU

“We had a lot of fun, roving a lot of fun tracks, with a lot of
challenges, all went alright, solely for a few accidents,
including cave on tarmac – my possess blunder as I’d incited a traction
control off!

“We enjoyed Thailand a lot, a views, a people, yet this was no
traveller trail; we were roving and roving and riding, and a evenings
were bustling with planning, meetings, eating, results, so we don’t have
so many gangling time during a GS Trophy, it’s all go.

Wen-Gao Liang / Team China

“We have enjoyed a GS Trophy unequivocally much. I’ve privately owned a GS
given 2006, so this is a smashing jubilee of a past 10 years
for me; we knew we contingency come to this event. With all a riders from
around a world, it’s so special; it’s any GS rider’s dream.

“As a team, we chose to float here, rather than fly, it was 4 days
to get here, yet that helped harmonize us before we started. We love
Thailand as well, all a people are smiling, a people in China call
Thailand ‘the smiling country’, it’s a special place.”

Sébastien Saphores Marc-Antoine Peltriaux / Team France

Sébastien: “It’s a pleasing experience, a heat was very
high yet it’s been beautiful, unequivocally nice. The third day might have been
a best, usually 160km yet to float channel a stream behind and onward is
so beautiful, we can’t do this in a country, it is forbidden.”

Marc-Antoine: “We are a happy team, no problems, all is perfect.
Laurent, a journalist, is a crazy yet pleasing man and a movies
he creates are unequivocally critical to us given it’s smashing for our
families to see what we have been doing here, it’s life and so
beautiful, yet it’s a tough pursuit for him, given even after one day he
has so many work to do. ‘Lolo’ is a hero!”

Peter Kopf Steffen Rahn / Team Germany

Peter: “We enjoyed a week, all was good, we were definitely
in it for a competition. Most times we did well, a teamwork got
a results. We attempted to win, yet didn’t. But we knew also that this
is an eventuality that comes once in your lifetime, if we are lucky, so
there’s so many some-more to it than usually either we win, to be in the
eventuality is a categorical thing – a best feeling!

Steffen: “Thailand is a ideal nation for enduro roving and for
a GS Trophy. The highlights for us were roving a formidable stages,
a Hò Chi Minh Path, a Helicopter Trail, a loop around Mae
Sariang – tough roving is a highlight!”

Francesco Catanese / Team Italy

“It’s been a bizarre week for us in a competition. We are all
enduro and motocross riders, so this has been opposite to a usual
riding, when we are racing. We suspicion we’d do better, yet in fact
‘gas’ is usually a tiny partial of a competition. If we’d famous this was
a approach we’d have finished some-more specific training, yet still it’s a
smashing experience.

“And we desired a country, a jungle, a forest, a plateau – an
extraordinary experience. In so many ways, perfect.”

Tsutomu Morohara / Team Japan

“I consider Team Japan got many delight from a GS Trophy. We came
not for a good time, yet for a best time. For me, unequivocally this
has been a best time in my life!

“We’ve enjoyed Thailand, it is unequivocally good, infrequently like Japan in
summer, some-more glorious marks yet – good people, good culture. And
we’ve had good guys for company.

“In Japan we have many manufacturers, yet they usually make motorcycles
– BMW Motorrad make motorcycles and culture. Especially in a GS
Trophy – a best of culture. To attend in a GS Trophy, this
has been my dream and it has come true!”

Felipe Horta / Team Latin America

“For us it’s been an extraordinary experience, a Latin American group is
from opposite countries: dual guys from Columbia, one man from
Guatemala and me from Chile. It was a initial time for us to ride
together, so from a foe viewpoint it is formidable because
a eventuality is impassioned and romantic and we are not as prepared, we
haven’t used a teamwork, as have a other teams. But a guys
are unequivocally good people, unequivocally still yet happy any day. And whether, in
a competition, it was good news or bad for us, we were any day
unequivocally happy.

“Our appreciation is a eventuality is a very-very good idea, for the
selling for BMW surely, yet it’s also unequivocally close, unequivocally warming, for
a riders it’s an extraordinary experience.”

Jorge Marroquin Bascos Leoncio Reynoso Sosa / Team Mexico

Jorge: “This has been an glorious event, I’m unapproachable to be here, I’ll
never forget this GS Trophy in my life, I’ve meant so many guys from
all over a universe and we wish to be in hold with them, everything
was perfect.

Leoncio: “I saw elephants, that was extraordinary day, yet any day the
inlet was unequivocally good, it was a unequivocally extraordinary eventuality with BMW. we am just
18 years aged yet this will be a memory for a rest of my life. If I
could, we would do it all over again.”

Anton Vlasov Ivan Chekov / Team Russia

Anton: “That was fun, definitely. Our expectations were to have fun
within a group afterwards make new friends in a other teams, to have a
good knowledge in Thailand. It totalled up, it was hot, it was fun,
during times utterly hard. Maybe for a initial few days we had a strong
feeling that we wanted to compete, yet afterwards over a final few days we
realised that a critical thing was to have fun, so afterwards we let it
go, it was time to have fun.”

Ivan: “The strongest memory – maybe of day 6 on a Hò Chi Minh
Path, that was tough yet we finished it as a team, assisting any other. It
was a unequivocally good experience.”

Byron Coetsee John Harris / Team South Africa

Byron: “It’s unequivocally a tighten call for me, between wanting to do
good in a foe and enjoying a experience. So between the
special stages we ran my GoPro a lot, given you’re concentrating on
a road, meditative about what’s going on and so we skip a insane
view that’s about you. So we ran a Go Pro, so we can watch back
again later, and we attempted to demeanour during everything, as many as possible.”

John: “I have to determine with Byron, I’d see a Japanese group and
they’d be using final or second final yet we are indeed sceptical of
them. We rode with them and their spirit, a fun they had, in terms
of removing a many out of a trip, those are a guys who are the
genuine winners, they’ve had a best time ever. we enviousness them for that!”

Tommy Lee Boon Jun / Team Southeast Asia

“We are enjoying a GS Trophy maybe a tiny bit too much! We were
unequivocally critical initially, yet we finished lots of mistakes, so after that we
usually wanted to suffer a event. It’s been good to accommodate similarly
disposed people and with a roving skills so identical it creates for
unequivocally beguiling riding. We’ve had a smashing time.”

Du-Yeol Choi / Team South Korea

“Thailand is a unequivocally good place, everybody is so unequivocally accessible and
always smiling. And Thai and Korean plateau – and many places – look
a same, unequivocally similar, so we are unequivocally happy here, we enjoyed the
roving and felt gentle and safe.

“We had many special experiences, and many humorous ones. We desired the
delayed race, we’d used it mostly in Korea, yet afterwards when it came to
a foe here we were so shaken we were all finished in 30 seconds!”

James Berrill, Oliver Twigg Gordon Blackley / Team UK

James: “It’s been improved than we approaching by far, it’s not usually the
competition. The route roving and a view has been amazing, the
competitors, everyone, even a reporters and a story tellers!”

Gordon: “The feeling after a initial dual days was amazing. We were
usually buzzing. The route roving adult a plateau was unequivocally good fun,
we enjoyed a views, enjoyed roving in a jungle. And a fact you
get to float with opposite teams any day is great, we don’t become
insular, we get to know everyone.”

Oliver: “There’s genuine camaraderie, some banter, yet foe as
well. Riding with a Germans we had a puncture yet they bound it. We
could have bound it yet they insisted on regulating it for us. It’s that
change that a eventuality seems to have. But there’s still that dilemma –
I’ll assistance we yet we unequivocally wish to kick you! Oh, and it’s been my
initial time camping. we hadn’t even suspicion about it, yet a cold
showers – yes, we even get a hang of those!”

Charles Lucht Dennis Godwin / Team USA

Dennis: “The whole eventuality is all we approaching and afterwards some. The
accommodations are incredible, a food is off a chart, a riding
is even serve off a chart, everybody is cool, we’re bustling all the
time, a special tests have been ingenious, fun, interesting, it’s
unequivocally been a great-great experience.”

Charles: “The bike is awesome, if we had remembered to reactivate the
ABS and traction control I’d not have crashed on day one that was 100%
user error, we ran out of talent! we have an 800GS – yet I’m
changing adult to a 1200GS now, this has been a best exam expostulate I’ve
taken in my whole life!”

Dennis: “What else is unequivocally engaging here is since almost
everywhere in a universe we find we come around a dilemma and it’s
‘oh-no there’s a truck’. Here there are no cars out there, just
motorcycles, usually scooters, always on their possess side of a road. That
it’s usually motorcycles out there, that’s so cool! What an amazing
place. This has been an extraordinary event.”